Category: Oakland Raiders

Done deal! Gruden signs 10-year, $100 million deal with Raiders

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Photo credit: @DamonBruce

By Jeremy Kahn

It was never a secret since the firing of Oakland Raiders head coach Jack Del Rio on who his replacement would be.

Well, it is now official, as the Raiders have announced the hiring of Jon Gruden as head coach of the Raiders.

Gruden returns to the team that he coached from 1996-2001 before being traded to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers after the Raiders lost to the New England Patriots 16-13 in the AFC Divisional Game, it what is known as “The Tuck Rule Game.”

The 54-year old Gruden led the Raiders to the 2000 AFC Championship Game, where the Raiders lost to the eventual Super Bowl Champion Baltimore Ravens.

Gruden spent the last nine seasons as an analyst on ESPN’S Monday Night Football after he was fired by the Buccaneers after the 2008 season.

“It’s an emotional and bittersweet day for our Monday Night Football family, as today we say goodbye to Coach Gruden after nine very distinguished years coaching this Monday Night Football group,” ESPN analyst Sean McDonough said at the beginning of Saturday’s game.

Kind of ironic that Gruden’s last game with ESPN was at the home of the Kansas City Chiefs, the Raiders rival since the two teams entered the old American Football League back in 1960, when the Chiefs played in Dallas as the Dallas Texans.

“These Chiefs fans have been on my case since we got here,” Gruden said jokingly.

ESPN.com contributed to this report.

Headline Sports with London Marq: Cardinal tighten up on defense to get big win over UCLA; Raiders will announce Gruden as head coach on Tuesday

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usatoday.com photo: The Stanford Cardinal’s Michael Humphrey tries to stop UCLA scoring with some defense in the Cardinal’s win Thursday night at Maples Pavilion

On the Headlines Podcast with London:

It was a night of the Stanford Cardinal freshman made a come back after two tough loses with Kansas and Cal. Stanford led by some really needed three pointers from Dorian Pickens help get the Cardinal a 107-99. Pickens for Thursday night scored 24 points. We haven’t seen Stanford play like this in a long time. It was a great win it would interesting to see how USC who comes in and coming off a win at Cal on Thursday night to see what they can do when they come to Stanford on Thursday.

The Cardinal have got some nuggets of success in pockets. First of all they hit the jack pot with freshman Issac White whose been a playmaker on or off the bench. The Cardinal also had Kezie Okpala who hit a jump shot in the overtime to tie up the ball game 91-91. Oscar De Silva feed Okpala who dunked and gave Stanford a 93-91 lead.

London Marq will be covering Stanford basketball on Sunday night for http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Headline Sports with Tony Renteria: Are opposing teams close to decoding Warriors?; Kings still snake bitten on home floor; Tiger four short of major record; plus more

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Photo credit: @jacknicklaus

On Headline Sports with Tony Renteria:

1 The Warriors who lost to the Charlotte Hornets on Friday and just got by the Mavericks on Wednesday. We ask Tony if opposing teams are decoding the Warriors and can they finally break through in figuring out how this team keeps winning each night?

2 The Sacramento Kings, who faced a Charlotte Hornets team who beat the Warriors Friday, got laid out 131-111. The Kings continue to struggle at home and now are 12-25 for the season

3 Tiger Woods, who’s had his personal struggles and worries, is making his return January 26th in the Bahamas for a major. Woods, who played well in another tournament last month, is just four short of the all-time record of 18 held by Jack Nicklaus for majors won.

4 Is the Rooney rule a sham? Tony comments on the Oakland Raiders almost certain hiring of Jon Gruden as they will go through the motions of interviewing a minority coach and then give the job to Gruden.

5  Also, after leaving the Raiders the last time in 2001, the situation is totally different with Gruden coming back in 2018

Tony Renteria does Headline Sports each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

 

Despite doubts, Jon Gruden is the right mechanic to fix Derek Carr and the Raiders

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Photo credit: @BleacherReport

By Joe Hawkes-Beamon
SRS Contributor

OAKLAND — For those who thought it was a cold-blooded move by Oakland Raiders owner Mark Davis to fire former head coach Jack Del Rio 20 minutes after a 30-10 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers to close out a disappointing 2017 at 6-10, let me just put you at ease:

It was rightfully timed, but honestly, it could’ve came earlier in the year.

In fact, Davis’ frustration can be traced back to Week 4. After starting the season 2-0 with impressive wins against the Tennessee Titans and New York Jets, the Raiders would go on to lose their next four straight games, bringing their record to 2-4.

Following a 2-2 stretch in late November and early December that pulled the Raiders into a three-way tie in the AFC West at 6-6, the Raiders never looked like the team that finished 12-4 in 2016 and made the playoffs for the first time since 2002.

Davis didn’t talk to reporters after Oakland’s fourth straight loss to end the season, but those close to the owner have said that Davis has grown frustrated with the team’s lackluster performance, most notably on the offensive side of the football, after committing big money contracts to quarterback Derek Carr and offensive linemen Gabe Jackson, Donald Penn and Kelechi Osemele in recent seasons.

Davis wanted to turn the page quickly to 2018 and handing the keys to the franchise over to former Raiders head coach and current ESPN Monday Night Football analyst Jon Gruden was supposedly the way to do it.

According to multiple reports, Gruden is expected to be named the next head coach of the Oakland Raiders, which also includes an ownership stake in the team. No deal is official, but the deal is “imminent” according to the reports.

In his first stint with Oakland, Gruden compiled a 64-38 regular season record, including a 4-2 postseason record. Gruden also led the Raiders to the AFC Championship Game in 2000, but was traded to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for draft picks following the 2001 season after a contract dispute with Mark’s father, Al.

Gruden would lead the Buccaneers to a 48-21 victory over the Raiders in Super Bowl XXXVII following the 2002 season. During his seven years in West Florida, he was 112-57 in the regular season, including a 3-2 postseason record.

The reunion between the Raiders and Gruden makes sense. Gruden is beloved by Raider Nation in Oakland. He never wanted to leave the Silver and Black and had the team on the verge of a Super Bowl championship, and Davis desperately wants to win a Super Bowl for the City of Oakland before the team moves to Las Vegas in 2020.

Gruden’s eventual hiring will do wonders for the Raiders, but most notably for quarterback Derek Carr, who regressed a bit in 2017. Carr did suffer a broken bone in his back, where he missed just one game but didn’t look healthy or confident all year.

After back-to-back seasons of averaging 3,900 yards and 25 touchdowns for a 93.9 quarterback rating, Carr took a step back in 2017, throwing for just 3,496 yards and 22 touchdowns for a quarterback rating of 86.4.

In 2017, Carr threw 13 interceptions after throwing just six in 2016.

Carr’s top wide receivers, Michael Crabtree and Amari Cooper, didn’t scare many teams this season. After an 89-catch, 1,003-yard receiving season in 2016, Crabtree finished with the season as the team’s leader in catches (58) and touchdowns (8) to go along with 618 yards in 14 games played after missing two games.

But Cooper’s 2017 season was just harder to figure out. Cooper was on his way of becoming one of the more electrifying wide receivers in the NFL with back-to-back 1,000-yards seasons, finished with just 680 yards receiving on 48 catches with seven touchdowns.

Tight end Jared Cook led Oakland in receiving yards with 688 on 54 catches for two touchdowns in his first season in Oakland.

But Carr is the the driver of the offense and Gruden will be tasked to repair a broken offense that finished 23rd in the NFL in scoring offense at 18.8 points per game in 2017 under first-time offensive coordinator Todd Downing after finishing fifth in scoring offense at 26.0 points per game in 2016 under then-offensive coordinator Bill Musgrave.

Whispers around the organization suggest that Carr had a hand in the shakeup at offensive coordinator, switching from the demanding Musgrave to the laid back Downing.

Simply put, Carr and Downing were best buddies and Musgrave was the third wheel. Carr and Downing hated having Musgrave’s hands in the offensive popcorn bucket and had to go.

Musgrave’s contract wasn’t renewed after the 2016 concluded.

If/when Gruden is named head coach of the Raiders, Downing won’t be retained which will put Carr on notice immediately with the new coaching staff. Gruden, along with former franchise quarterback Rich Gannon who is rumored to join Gruden’s staff as the quarterback coach, will make it their personal goal to get every ounce of talent out of Carr.

From footwork to calling the plays in the huddle, Carr will be broken down and rebuilt by Gruden and Gannon.

In the end, the play of the the Raiders’ $125 million quarterback will determine the team’s success, but Gruden will be responsible for delivering the organization’s elusive fourth Super Bowl title it thirsts for.

That’s Amaury’s Podcast, News, & Commentary: Sharks-Habs battling to get back in win column tonight; NFL Wild Cards; Manny Machado will he stay or will he go; Gruden waits for hiring process at Raiders

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Photo credit: @NBCSports

Daniel Dullum is filling for Amaury’s Podcast today:

1 The Sharks are coming off a tough 6-0 in Dallas on Sunday and are looking to get back into the win column. The Montreal Canadiens are currently on a four-game loss streak and host the Sharks in a frosty cold Montreal, but there’s no outdoor game here as they’ll hook up tonight at the Bell Centre for this contest.

2 NFL Wild Card Playoffs start this Saturday. Daniel takes a look at Tennessee @ Kansas City and in game two Atlanta @ LA Rams.

3 For Sunday’s Wild Card games game one Buffalo @ Jacksonville and game two Carolina @ New Orleans.

4 The Cubs looked like the front runner in the Manny Machado sweepstakes, but the latest is Machado is up for grabs and the Baltimore Orioles owner Peter Angelos is not very excited about letting Machado get away. A Machado contract would command around $325 million.

5. Former Oakland Raiders head coach Jon Gruden has said “let’s wait and see” in regards to his getting the job at the Raiders. Gruden can’t very well come out and say “the job is mine” because the Raiders are obligated by NFL policy to abide by the Art Rooney rule and have to interview at least one minority before announcing that Gruden is the new head coach. Sources say a minority assistant coach could be interviewed and if they hire Gruden that assistant coach could be hired on under Gruden as his assistant coach.

Daniel Dullum is filling in for Amaury for today’s podcast at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

Raiders part ways with head coach Jack Del Rio after 30-10 thrashing from Chargers

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Oakland Raiders head coach Jack Del Rio reacts during a news conference after an NFL football game against the Los Angeles Chargers, Sunday, Dec. 31, 2017, in Carson, Calif. (AP Photo/Kelvin Kuo)

By Jeremy Kahn

Who would have thought when the 2017 season began, the Oakland Raiders would not make a return appearance to the AFC Playoffs, but now they are looking for a new head coach as well.

Jack Del Rio was informed after the game that he was being dismissed as coach of the Raiders by owner Mark Davis.

The firing of Del Rio comes just months after the Hayward native signed a four-year extension with the team.

“Today was kind of a microcosm of our season,” Del Rio said after the Raiders’ 30-10 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday. “The opportunities and lack of production really not good enough, really disappointing.”

In his first season with the team in 2015, Del Rio went 7-9, then in 2016, the Raiders returned to the playoffs for the first time since the 2002 season, as they went 12-4; however, this season their record fell to 6-10 and they missed the playoffs for the 14th time in 15 seasons.

“He told me he loved me and appreciated all I did to get this program going in the right direction, but that he felt the need to change,” Del Rio said. “I told him how much I appreciated the opportunity he gave me; very grateful, my childhood team.”

“But it’s a results business. I understand that.”

In his three seasons with the Raiders, Del Rio went 25-23, becoming just one of seven Raiders coaches in team history to have a winning record their tenure ended.

Del Rio joins Al Davis (23-16-3), John Rauch (33-8-1), John Madden (103-32-7) , Tom Flores (83-53), Art Shell (56-52) and Jon Gruden (38-26).

ESPN.com contributed to this report.

Raiders’ season ends on a sour note as they get blown out by Chargers 30-10

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Los Angeles Chargers defensive end Darius Philon reacts after a play during the second half of an NFL football game against the Oakland Raiders, Sunday, Dec. 31, 2017, in Carson, Calif. (AP Photo/Alex Gallardo)

By Jeremy Kahn

With their playoff chances on the line, the Los Angeles Chargers did not let the pedal off the gas against their biggest rival–the Oakland Raiders–on Sunday afternoon.

Philip Rivers threw for 387 yards and three touchdowns, as the Chargers defeated the Raiders 30-10 at the Stubhub Center.

Unfortunately, the news was not all good for the Chargers, as they were eliminated from the AFC Playoff race just moments after their win, when the Tennessee Titans defeated the Jacksonville Jaguars at Nissan Stadium.

Former Cal star Keenan Allen scored on a 27-yard fumble return for the Chargers, who were attempting to become just the second team in NFL history to make the playoffs after starting the season with an 0-4 record.

Allen also scored on a six-yard touchdown pass from Rivers, as the Chargers ended the season by winning six out of their last seven games.

Rivers also threw touchdown passes to Tyrell Williams for 56 yards, and Travis Benjamin was on the receiving end of a 62-yard touchdown pass.

As for the Raiders, the nightmare season is now over, as they entered the season with such high expectations; however, they lost their final four games of the season to end the season with a 6-10 record.

Amari Cooper ended the season on a high note, as he was on the receiving end of an 87-yard touchdown pass from Derek Carr; however, that would be the only Raiders touchdown of the afternoon.

Cooper ended the afternoon with three catches for 115 yards and that 87-yard touchdown reception from Carr.

In the season finale, Carr went 19-for-28 for 243 yards passing with a touchdown and an interception.

Marshawn Lynch led the Raiders in rushing, as he carried the ball 19 times for 101 yards on the afternoon.

It turned out to be a good day for Lynch, who went over the 10,000-yard plateau for his career and also earned a $600,000 bonus for going over the 800-yard mark for the season.

Oakland Raiders Podcast with Joe Hawkes Beamon: Raiders would like to end season on a good note in LA

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Oakland Raiders’ Derek Carr, left, hands off to Marshawn Lynch during the first half of an NFL football game against the Philadelphia Eagles, Monday, Dec. 25, 2017, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Chris Szagola)

On the Oakland Raiders Podcast with J Hawkes:

1 Oakland Raiders into their last game of the season against the LA Chargers this Sunday at Stub Hub Center in Carson. It’ll be the Raiders first visit to LA since they moved back to Oakland in 1995.

2 The Raiders come in after losing three straight including last week to the Eagles 19-10

3 The Raiders in tough on last week their defense held the Eagles to 14 third down situation out of 15

4 Offensively the Raiders got help from running back Marshawn Lynch who carried 25 times for 95 yards

5 As the Chargers host the Raiders Joe will take a look at how this one stacks up

Joe Hawkes Beamon did the Raiders home and away previews and will handle the NFL Playoff Podcast Fridays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Raiders close out regular season against Chargers at StubHub Center

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Oakland Raiders’ Amari Cooper (89) catches a pass against Philadelphia Eagles’ Corey Graham (24) during the first half of an NFL football game, Monday, Dec. 25, 2017, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Chris Szagola)

By Joe Hawkes-Beamon
SRS Contributor

OAKLAND — The Raiders will wrap up the 2017 regular season on the road against the Chargers at the StubHub Center. Sunday’s game will also conclude the regular season series between these longtime rivals, who first met back in 1960. Los Angeles defeated the Raiders back in Week 6, 17-16, in Oakland. Raiders lead the all-time series 62-51-2.

Oakland (6-9) dropped their third straight game, losing to the now 13-2 Philadelphia Eagles 19-10 before a national televised audience on ESPN’s Monday Night Football. The Raiders’ defense played strong, holding the Eagles to just 216 yards of total offense (138 passing and 78 rushing).

The Silver and Black held the Eagles to just 1-of-14 on third downs. Middle linebacker NaVorro Bowman led the Raiders with seven tackles, while defensive linemen Denico Autry and Jihad Ward each recording a sack; it was Ward’s first career sack.

Safety Reggie Nelson was around the football the entire night, forcing two turnovers against Philadelphia in the second half. Nelson forced a fumble that was recovered by cornerback TJ Carrie, and then registered an interception off Eagles starting quarterback Nick Foles in the fourth quarter. For the game, Nelson finished with six tackles and three pass defensed.

Offensively, Oakland’s running game came alive behind starting running back Marshawn Lynch, who rushed for 95 yards on 25 carries. Starting quarterback Derek Carr threw for 140 yards on 15-of-29 passing with one touchdown and one interception.

After missing the previous two games with an ankle injury, wide receiver Amari Cooper returned to the lineup and finished with three catches for 66 yards and one touchdown. Cooper got great separation from Eagles starting cornerback Jalen Mills running a slant-and-go for a 63-yard score in the first half.

Los Angeles (8-7) enters Week 17 with a shot at making the AFC playoffs. After a slow start to the season, the Chargers have now won five of their last six games after dispatching the New York Jets, 14-7, last Sunday at MetLife Stadium. The Chargers can clinch a playoff berth with a win against the Raiders, coupled with losses by both the Tennessee Titans (8-7) and Buffalo Bills (8-7).

Starting quarterback Philip Rivers threw for 290 yards on 22-of-40 passing with one touchdown against the Jets last week. The 14-year veteran enters the final weekend of the season ranking third in the NFL in passing yards with 4,128 and ninth in touchdown passes with 25 and only 10 interceptions.

Wide receiver Keenan Allen appears to be all the way back from the torn ACL he suffered last season, ranking fourth among wide receivers in the NFL with 1,260 receiving yards to go along with 93 catches–all career-highs for the fifth-year pro. Allen has caught five touchdowns this season.

Running back Melvin Gordon is Los Angeles’s most versatile offensive weapon. Gordon is tied for third in the NFL with 12 touchdowns (eight rushing and four receiving). The third-year pro rushed for 81 yards on 19 carries and one touchdown against the Jets, helping him eclipse 1,000 yards for the first time in his career.

Gordon enters Sunday’s matchup against Oakland rushing for 1,012 yards on 257 carries, to go along with 52 catches for 445 yards this season.

The Chargers have one of the better defenses in the league, ranking fifth in the NFL with 41 sacks. Second-year defensive end Joey Bosa leads the team with 11.5 sacks, while fellow defensive end Melvin Ingram is close behind with 10 sacks. After finishing tied for the NFL lead in interceptions in 2016, Los Angeles is currently tied for third with 17 interceptions this season.

Safety Tre Boston and cornerback Casey Hayward are tied for the team lead with four picks apiece.

Kickoff is set for 1:25 p.m. PT.

Christmas haunts Raiders as they drop 19-10 decision to Eagles

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Philadelphia Eagles’ Jake Elliott (4) and Donnie Jones (8) celebrate past Oakland Raiders’ T.J. Carrie (38) after Elliott’s field goal during the second half of an NFL football game, Monday, Dec. 25, 2017, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Chris Szagola)

By Jeremy Kahn

With a possibility to be spoilers to the Philadelphia Eagles’ playoff plans, the Oakland Raiders were unable to take advantage of that.

Jake Elliott kicked a 48-yard field goal with 22 seconds remaining in the game, as the Eagles defeated the Raiders 19-10 at Lincoln Financial Field on Monday night.

With the victory, the Eagles improved to 13-2 on the season and clinched home field advantage throughout the NFC Playoffs. The last time the Eagles were home throughout the entire NFC Playoffs was during the 2004 Playoffs. The Eagles ended up in the Super Bowl against the New England Patriots, where they lost to the Patriots 24-21.

The game-winning field goal by Elliott was set up by a Ronald Darby interception that was returned 52 yards for a touchdown. However, Darby was ruled down by contact by Amari Cooper.

Nick Foles went 4-for-4 on the ensuing drive for a 21-yard drive that culminated with the Elliott field goal.

The Eagles got on the board in the first quarter, as Foles found Jay Ajayi for a 17-yard touchdown pass.

Derek Carr tied up the game with a 63-yard touchdown pass to Cooper, as cornerback Jalen Mills attempted to jump the route.

Giorgio Tavecchio gave the Raiders their only lead of the game, as he kicked a 25-yard field goal on the Raiders’ opening series of the third quarter.

The two teams traded turnovers on three consecutive possessions, beginning when Patrick Robinson intercepted a Carr pass.

Ajayi fumbled the back to the Raiders, and then Marshawn Lynch gave the ball back to the Eagles on the next play, as he fumbled.

Elliott then tied up the game at 10, as he nailed a 35-yard field goal.

With a chance to give the Raiders the lead, Tavecchio missed a 48-yard field goal with just under eight minutes remaining in the game.

Foles was unable to get the Eagles going, as he threw an interception that bounced off the hands of Zach Ertz and into the hand of Reggie Nelson.

Malcolm Jenkins then got the ball back for the Eagles, as he stripped Jalen Richard of the ball and he recovered it on their own 16.

Following three consecutive three-and-outs, Darby intercepted Carr’s pass that eventually turned into Elliott’s game-winning field goal.

The final points of the evening came on the final play of the game, as Derek Barnett scored on a 23-yard fumble return, when Jalen Richard’s pitch back to Carr fell to the Lincoln Financial Field ground and Barnett scooped it up and went into the end zone.

NOTES: With the postseason no longer in their sights, the Raiders will close out their 2017 season against the Los Angeles Chargers at the Stubhub Center on Sunday afternoon at 1:25 pm PT.